Joel H. Rosenthal is president of Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs. As a nonprofit leader, scholar, and teacher he works to empower ethical action, with a particular focus on U.S. foreign policy, issues of war and peace, human rights, and pluralism. At Carnegie Council, Rosenthal leads a team that identifies critical ethical issues, convenes experts, and produces agenda-setting resources to educate and activate communities globally.
Rosenthal is editor-in-chief of the Ethics & International Affairs journal published by Cambridge University Press. His first book Righteous Realists is an examination of the political realists who shaped post-WWII America in the nuclear age, including Hans Morgenthau, Reinhold Niebuhr, and George Kennan. His current writing and commentary can be found at the President’s Desk.
Rosenthal is the recipient of numerous awards including the Distinguished Scholar Award from the International Studies Association for his lifetime achievement in international studies and an Honorary Degree of Doctor of Social Science from the University of Edinburgh. He received his Ph.D. from Yale University and BA from Harvard University.
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Featured Work
FEB 10, 2021 • Podcast
The Good American: The Epic Life of Bob Gersony, the U.S. Government's Greatest Humanitarian, with Robert D. Kaplan
In his long career as a journalist covering the Cold War and its aftermath, best-selling author Robert D. Kaplan often crossed paths with Bob Gersony. ...
DEC 7, 2020 • Podcast
Vaccine Ethics: What Are We Learning from COVID-19?
As the race for COVID–19 vaccines enters its next stage, we are faced with broad ethical challenges, along with specific questions of principle and practice. ...
SEP 23, 2020 • Podcast
The Last Million: Europe's Displaced Persons from World War to Cold War, with David Nasaw
The aftershocks of World War II did not end with German capitulation in May 1945. Millions were displaced, including concentration camp survivors, POWs, slave laborers, political ...
SEP 14, 2020 • Transcript
Protests in Perspective: The Protests Go Global, with Mary L. Dudziak & Brenda Gayle Plummer
The killing of George Floyd and the wave of protests that followed bring to life the current struggle for civil rights, human rights, and social ...
JUN 15, 2020 • Podcast
The Ethics of the Coronavirus Lockdown, with Christian Barry
Due to COVID-19, significant restrictions have been placed on freedoms to move about in many nations. Philosopher Christian Barry explores how the costs of these ...
JUN 8, 2020 • Podcast
Mysterious Machines: The Road Ahead for AI Ethics in International Security, with Arthur Holland Michel
How do we learn to trust AI systems and what are the implications of this technology as nations confront mass protests in a post-pandemic world?
MAY 22, 2020 • Podcast
Agile Global Governance, Artificial Intelligence, & Public Health, with Wendell Wallach
The rapid development of emerging technologies like AI signaled a new inflection point in human history, accompanied by calls for agile international governance. With the ...
MAY 15, 2020 • Podcast
Ethical Leadership in Times of Crisis, with Jeff McCausland
The COVID-19 pandemic has upended daily life for everyone. From large corporations to small non-profits to schools to the military, leaders at all types of ...
MAY 15, 2020 • Transcript
Ethical Leadership in Times of Crisis, with Jeff McCausland
The COVID-19 pandemic has upended daily life for everyone. From large corporations to small non-profits to schools to the military, leaders at all types of ...
MAY 8, 2020 • Podcast
Democracy on the Verge: Leadership in Times of Crisis, with Ted Widmer
In this fascinating conversation with Carnegie Council President Joel Rosenthal, historian Ted Widmer looks back on 13 pivotal days in Abraham Lincoln's life in 1861--the basis ...